"In 1833, after several neighbors allegedly saw her cowhiding a young servant girl in the mansion's courtyard, rumors began to spread around town that Mme. LaLaurie treated her servants viciously. According to one tale, a young slave girl had been brushing Mme. LaLaurie's hair in the upstairs bedroom when the young servant hit a snag in her mistress's hair, causing LaLaurie to become enraged. Mme. LaLaurie whipped the twelve year old slave girl, who tried to escape but fell off a balcony overlooking the courtyard, ending her life. The girl was quickly brought into the LaLaurie Mansion, but not before being observed by neighbors, who would file a complaint. The neighbors would later assert that the young girl was buried under a tree in the yard."

"A fire broke out in the kitchen of the mansion. The firemen entered the building through the courtyard. To their surprise, there were two slaves chained to the stove in the kitchen. It appeared as though the slaves had set the fire themselves in order to attract attention. The fire itself was soon subdued.

However, the biggest surprise was to be found in the attic, where the fire brigade was directed by the other slaves. The door was bolted, forcing the fire brigade to use a battering ram to open the door. Inside the crawlspace attic was the stench of death. According to contemporary accounts, over a dozen disfigured and maimed slaves were manacled to the walls or floor. Several had allegedly been the subject of gruesome medical experiments.

The exact details are unclear; owing to the horrific nature of the crime, many details were either swept under the rug or embellished. One man looked as though he had been victim of some bizarre makeshift sex change. Another one had a hole in his head where a stick had been inserted to "stir his brains". A woman was trapped inside a small cage where her arms and legs had been badly broken and then reset at odd angles, making her appear as some sort of "human crab." Another woman had her arms and legs removed and patches of her flesh had been sliced off in a circular motion to make her appear as a giant caterpillar. Some had their mouths sewn shut and had then starved to death. Others had their hands sewn to different parts of their bodies. One woman had her entrails pulled out of her stomach and was secured to the floor by her own intestines. A small boy of about twelve had the flesh on half of his face peeled back, revealing muscle, veins, and so forth. The wound had since been infested with disease and insects. Most of the victims were found dead. Those who were still alive, begged to be put out of their misery and died shortly after."

"Also discovered in the attic were teacups and saucers, encrusted with a "red substance." There were several bottles lying about with what was assumed to be the same red substance. The substance in the bottles was later identified as blood."

" In 1949, the house became a furniture store, which did not do as well at that location. The owner allegedly discovered his merchandise was ruined on several occasions, covered with a foul liquid filth. Suspecting vandals, the owner claimed to have waited one night with a shotgun, hoping to catch the vandals in the act, only to discover at dawn that the furniture was once again ruined. He closed the place down shortly thereafter."

"In 1969, the house was purchased by a retired New Orleans physician and renovated into apartments. Much of the house was in serious disrepair. When floorboards were replaced in the third floor slave quarters, the bodies of 75 people, who were though to have been buried alive, were found. The owner restored the home to its original state with a living area in the front portion and five apartments to the rear of the building. He had no paranormal experiences while living in the house.

In 2007, actor Nicolas Cage bought the LaLaurie House through his Hancock Park Real Estate Company LLC."[/b]

"It's always the same," Officer Schuette explains. "Detectives find the rabbit lying dead in a hutch. An unknown person has cut off the head and drained off the blood in a box or a bottle. So we find no blood and no head."

Police fear the attacker could switch from killing rabbits to killing people.

They have set up a special task force to try to track down the killer.

Satellite spy

They are examining rabbit torsos for possible traces of DNA and they have questioned 300 people. But police admit they still have no idea who is decapitating the rabbits and why.

It is also unclear how the killer has been locating his victims.

Most of the beheaded bunnies were hidden from public view, locked away in back yards or back gardens.

It has raised the possibility that the killer has been using satellite images on the internet to find houses with rabbit hutches.

The pet rabbits of the Ruhr Valley are being forced to go to ground, while the killer is still at large.